Madness of the Black Eagle
by Draconian-Theatrics
Summary: After years of living as a slave, Princess Gillian of Ramneyg is brought home, barely knowing who she is, and finding her brother, the Emperor, slipping into insanity under the power of the Black Jewel. The eagle's wings are gone, but perhaps all that's needed are its sharp talons. WARNING: GORE AND MURDER. HetaQuest story.
1. Caged Eagle

The crack of a whip and the sharp sting of leather against skin was a bitter wake-up call. How long had she been in this hellhole? It felt like ages. She dragged herself to her feet and pulled her clothes on, scratchy and too big for her thin frame, following the shouted orders of her keeper to head for the kitchen where she would spend her day, just like every day before. By now she had endured ruthless torture, starvation, beatings, anything they could think of to make her life miserable. She had forgotten her name, her age, where she was from, what laughter sounded like, how to smile... Merely a hollow shell of who she might have been. Yet one thing she did know was hate, and she clung to that single feeling as if it was her only connection to being human. She hated. She hated her keepers, she hated her forced work, she hated her tiny little room, she hated the sun for piercing her delicate red eyes the rare times they dragged her outside, she hated her pale, pale skin for burning so easily in the unrelenting sunlight, she hated herself... Anything she could hate, she hated with her whole being. Hate was her air, her food, her drink. Her mind was nothing but a twisted ball of hate, and she welcomed it. If she could have nothing else in the world, she would have her hate. It burned inside her heart when she shivered in icy winds, it whispered in her thoughts when she was encased in silence. _Today,_ it said, _Today we will teach them what true pain is._

The sun had barely started to break over the horizon when a commotion was heard outside, shouting and the clashing of metal. The silver-haired girl saw her chance and grabbed a knife, slinking through the building and letting her hate guide her steps. She would kill, today. She would kill them. The first one she saw, she leapt at, her weapon raised high, and as she knocked him to the ground, her knife came down and slashed his throat, spilling blood everywhere, staining her hands, face, her long hair, and her horrid clothes. She turned her head and scanned the area for others, red eyes gleaming behind long bangs. _Yes,_ purred her hatred, _It feels good, doesn't it? The satisfaction that you are getting revenge on them? Yes, it feels good. Kill them. Kill them all. Spill their blood as penance for what they've done!_ She licked her lips, tasting the salty blood, and her lips curved in a cruel sneer, abandoning the body in search of her prey. She would kill every last one of them. She would walk out with a trail of bodies behind her, drenched in their blood. The building was labyrinthine, and she combed her way through it, searching every room she could get into for her keepers, murdering them and leaving their corpses in a pool of blood. When she finally reached the main hallway, she came face to face with the reason she'd gotten her distraction. A small army had invaded and attacked her keepers, the cruel men trying to hold them off or push them back, but the albino girl had a different idea, diving into the fray from behind, where they were unprotected, slaughtering everyone she could reach, the leader of the army coming to a stop and staring in stunned disbelief at the girl that appeared from nowhere and was killing their enemy. With her help, they managed to kill every last one, and with the final few dead, the woman stood among the carnage, knife clutched in her hands, splashed with blood, looking around and taking it in.

"Are you alright?" One soldier asked, carefully approaching her. She didn't turn her head to look at him, just nodded silently and brushed some sticky hair out of her face to see a little better. She had triumphed, broke free of her hell and gotten revenge. Now she could move on and learn to be human again, couldn't she? Her hatred laughed at the thought, _Do you really think you can be considered human after slaughtering so many people?_ She considered this and found no argument against the question, _That's right, you could never be human, no human would ever want to kill so badly. You're just an animal in a human body, and all you have to guide you... Is me._ That was true, before she realized that she could survive on hate, she was nothing more than a mindless beast enduring cruelty after cruelty in hopes of seeing another day. This was as human as she would get. A hand on her shoulder pulled her from her thoughts, and she turned to fix her red gaze on the man touching her, causing him to hesitate before speaking,

"Do you know if there's a girl named Gillian here?" Gillian? The name sounded so strange, foreign to her, and yet... She felt like she'd heard it before. She searched her memory for another time that name might have been said around her, a dark, hazy memory from years ago flickering to life. A boy, she couldn't make out his face, speaking to her and laughing loudly. Most of his words were garbled and unclear, but she could make out the name Gillian. She considered this for a moment, then nodded at the man, who looked relieved, "Thank God... Do you know where she is?" Again, she nodded, turning to throw the knife at a man who was struggling to stay alive, gurgling as the blade pierced his heart and he fell to the ground. She turned back to the man, opening her mouth to speak, her voice raspy and unused,

"You're looking at her."


	2. Flying Home

News spread quickly in Ramneyg, and soon everyone was buzzing with rumours about the strange albino girl that had been found in from a nearby slave-trade hideout. Some thought she was just a delusional slave girl, others claimed she was a long-lost child of the royal family, or an illegitimate child of the late king. No matter what the rumour, everyone was curious to see her for themselves. The soldiers that found her marched into the city, everyone lining the main street to get a glimpse of the girl, who had been given a horse to ride, seeing as she was currently far too weak to walk that far, a cloak draped over her to keep the sun from burning her skin. She glanced around at the people whispering and staring at her, her eyes still hidden behind the shaggy, unkempt mess that was her hair. She was glad when they led her into the castle, slipping the cloak off and looking around. It was a well-furnished place, fairly lit...

"Welcome to Ramneyg, miss." A voice said, and she turned her head to face the pristine-dressed brunette who's face betrayed the tiniest hint of disdain for her filthy, bloody appearance, "The emperor is busy at the moment, but I can escort you to the guest room and you can wash up. Fresh clothes will be brought to you." The pale girl nodded, flicking some stray hair off her shoulder before silently following the brunette through the halls. The guest room was nice and spacious, and after a thorough bath to get the blood and years of grime and dirt off, she felt at least a little better, brushing the knots out of her hair before putting on the fairly simple dress she was given and looking in the mirror. She wasn't totally happy with the look, but it would do until she could get something better. There was a knock on the door and the brunette, who had said his name was Roderich, let her know the emperor would see her now.

One thing the silver-haired girl could tell was that nearly every room in the castle was spacious, but she passed that off as being royal eccentricity, so she ignored it on the way into the throne room, looking at the man seated on the throne before her. He was dressed in blues and gold, and his silver hair matched her own. He seemed a little on edge, as if something was bothering him, but when he looked her over, he seemed to relax a fraction,

"Your Majesty, this is the girl that was found who claims to be Princess Gillian." Roderich explained as she came to a stop at the foot of the stairs, looking up at him. The emperor regarded her for a long moment, taking in her appearance carefully before nodding,

"She is my sister." He answered, getting up and descending the steps to embrace the silent girl, "It's been so long, Gillian. I thought for sure you'd been killed..." The girl blinked slowly, looking at the man holding her,

"And how can you be so sure I'm her?" Her voice still rasped in her throat, incentive to remain silent as much as possible, "I barely remember myself." The emperor stepped back, shaking his head some with a small smile,

"I can feel it. Still, we shall have our true proof later. There is something we must do." His voice took on a darker tone as he spoke, "Gillian, the king of Âge has murdered Ludwig, our little brother. I must have revenge." Gillian blinked slowly again, the little voice in her mind scoffing, _He's as crazy as you are~ But he's not used to it like you~_ She ignored the voice for now, simply shrugging,

"What am I supposed to do about it?" The emperor laughed a bit, gripping her shoulders tightly,

"You're going to help me burn Âge to the ground." He said, Roderich looking worried where he was standing, so Gillian decided to take the matter into her own hands, smacking the man across the face,

"Don't be stupid." She rasped, "What proof do you have that the king did this? Who gave you the details? How do you know they weren't lying?" While she didn't completely understand everything, she had overheard some of her keepers discussing what had been going on outside her prison. Even if the emperor believed what he'd been told, Gillian had a feeling that something was up. "I've spent years in Hell. I want to know everything that's happened so far." Here, Roderich took over explaining, the emperor, Gilbert, returning to his throne to listen, Gillian going over all of it in her mind before scoffing, shaking her head, "Relinquish the power of the Jewel. You can't handle what it does to your mind now that Ludwig isn't here to keep you stable. Whoever killed Ludwig no doubt took the Jewel and is simply waiting for your death to step in and take control of it and the kingdom. Let the king send who he likes, but you will make no move on Âge until the Jewel is returned." Gilbert thought this over, then nodded slowly, taking a deep breath,

"You're right... The Jewel is dangerous... Gillian, no one knows who you really are, so you can move freely between the cities, unlike Ludwig..." He winced at the mention of his name, "Find the Jewel and bring it back as fast as you can." Gillian nodded, looking down at the dress she was wearing,

"I'll need a day or two to recover, and I'll want a better outfit..." Gilbert laughed a bit, nodding,

"I can provide you with the money you need. Rest today, I will have a healer visit you shortly to get you in better health." Gillian thanked the man, turning and leaving, her hatred purring in her mind, _You know, if you had that Jewel... Think of all the people you could slaughter~_ Gillian smirked coldly, nodding. She could. That thought could be entertained later, though. She needed to rest.


	3. Hunting

Thanks to the healer Gilbert had sent, Gillian had recovered rapidly from the abuses, though she was still very thin and scars would mark her skin where old wounds had been left untended. With the money she was given, Gillian went on a brief shopping spree to get clothes that she liked better. Black pants, a form-fitting black shirt, and fingerless gloves that reached up to her elbow. It didn't cover all of her skin, but the healer had said that one of the spells used would keep the sun from burning her as quickly, something they used for the emperor as well. With her new clothes and a pouch strapped to her hip, Gillian set out for Âge as fast as she could, taking a horse to cover more distances and avoid most of the troublesome chimeras infesting the land. Once she reached Spina, she was quick to find the man who could get her a ship, Carriedo, according to Roderich. He seemed a little surprised to see her, but refrained from commenting, just finding her the fastest ship he could while she asked around to see of anyone had heard about Ludwig and his companions.

"What do you mean you don't know where they are?!" Gillian had bumped into this angry man a few moments earlier, and decided to ask him about Ludwig, learning very quickly that this was the brother of Feliciano, who had accompanied Ludwig. "God dammit, if you don't fucking tell me what happened to them..." He started, reaching for his halberd, but Gillian simply crossed her arms, watching him through her hair,

"I was sent to get information about them. Until I know the full story, I have nothing to tell you. Now, I'll ask you again, did you see them before they went to Âge, and if yes, do you know where they went?" The brunette sighed heavily, rubbing his temple, clearly agitated,

"...I saw them. They said they were trying to get to Cenarf, and Antonio told them it was safer and faster to go to Netis and cross Âge on foot instead of fighting the monsters in the sea." He looked away, scowling, "They were supposed to meet an escort or something in Zeldwintsar and head for Cenarf. Beyond that, I know nothing." Gillian nodded, extracting a few coins from her pouch and dropping them on the table in front of the brunette,

"Thank you for the information." Now that she knew where to start once in Âge, she wouldn't be searching blind. She got up, leaving the bar where they'd settled to talk, heading for the docks where Antonio was waiting, smiling brightly,

"Learn anything useful?" Gillian nodded, brushing her hair out of her eyes,

"I'll be heading for Netis." The brunette nodded, calling out the destination to the ship as she walked toward it, "Have a safe trip, amiga!"

Back in Ramneyg, Gilbert had wandered back to the room where the jewel had been kept, sighing some as he looked around, frowning when that masked man appeared in front of him, chuckling smugly,

"She's useless, you know." He said, but Gilbert just scoffed,

"And why do you say that?" The man circled him, looking him over,

"I've heard how you found her. A slave girl rumoured to be your sister? No, you're just clinging to the false hope that your dear sister is still alive and can keep you sane in Ludwig's place. That pathetic girl is simply a bit of trash you've polished up and put a bow on to make it look nice." Gilbert closed his eyes, smiling bitterly,

"So what if she is? That will hardly stop me from doing what I planned. Now get out of my sight. Even with that mask, your face is repulsive." The man laughed cruelly, vanishing again, Gilbert looking at the empty spot where the jewel had been, "...Gillian... Find it soon... Before it completely overcomes me..."

Gillian reached Netis, heading straight for Zeldwintsar and barely stopping long enough to ask where the man in charge was. The guard hesitated, doubtful,

"H-he's in Cenarf... He's been put in jail, miss." Gillian sighed, shaking her head, getting back on her horse,

"Then there's no use staying here. Thank you." She took off into the desert, briefly pausing in Gypte to let her horse rest and see if anyone there knew anything, drawing up a lot of blanks in the end, so she moved on to Kyuret. Here, she could tell she would get some answers she wanted. The city was still recovering from the massive damage it had taken, and Gillian got quite a lot of information about the battle that had occurred. Six arrived, Ludwig and his two companions, and their three-man escort. A woman appeared, two of the escort left, and the other joined the woman to fight Ludwig. A boy arrived, buying Ludwig time to escape, though he and his friends were injured, and managed to keep the two back for a while before chimeras showed up and the pair left. Satisfied that they had given her as much information as possible, Gillian set off for Cenarf to see if they knew more.


	4. Captured Prey

The city of Cenarf was massive, built out over the sea and full of life and beauty, but there was no time to stop and look around, Gillian had people to interrogate and questions that needed answering. She headed straight for the palace, her horse left in the care of a stable, stepping inside and going to ask one of the guards if she could speak with the head of Zeldwintsar, getting denied rather abruptly, but she wouldn't take no for an answer just yet. Since they wouldn't let her in the easy way, she took a different route. It was getting dark now, so her black clothes masked her figure better as she took to the walls outside, climbing around to a different entrance to the jail and slipping inside, making a point to only knock the guards unconscious, rather than killing them like she was tempted to do. She slunk along the hallway, scanning the cells, finding the man she was after and leaning against the bars,

"Hey, you." She called softly, making him stir and sit up, "Are you Vash, the head of Zeldwintsar?" The blond man scowled at her, nodding warily,

"Who are you?" He asked, tense and suspicious, but Gillian just scoffed,

"Just a girl." She tilted her head a bit, looking him over, "Can you tell me what happened to Prince Ludwig? Or the Jewel?" Vash's eyes widened slightly and he got up to stand closer so they could speak quietly together,

"You were sent by the Emperor?" Gillian nodded and Vash sighed, crossing his arms, "I'll tell you what I can, but I don't know everything." He explained that an escort was to meet the envoy of Ära in his city, but the escort that showed up turned out to be a fake and they attacked Ludwig in Kyuret. They had been searching for him and his companions for days now, with no luck of finding them, but Gilbert seemed certain they were dead and wanted revenge against the king. Gillian took this in quietly, frowning some,

"The fake escort, what were their names?" Vash frowned slightly, running a hand through his hair,

"I think they were Toris, Eduard, and Raivis?" Gillian's eyes narrowed and she straightened up, muttering to herself,

"Those are not Âgen names. In which case, there is someone else pulling the strings..." She handed Vash some money and thanked him for the information, leaving the way she came and sending a message to Gilbert via pigeon that she would be gone for a while longer in her search for the Jewel. She took up shelter for the night, then went to the harbor and sought a small ship that would be willing to take her across the sea, buying a thick coat to keep her warm for her destination before talking with the ship's captain to map out their best course.

"I'm telling you, we should skirt the shores, the monsters fill the deeper waters and make it treacherous to cross." He insisted, but Gillian shook her head with a scowl,

"That would take too long. If you value the fate of your kingdom, you'll cut straight across the northern part of the sea as fast as the wind will take you. The longer we spend at sea, the more likely Ära will be to invade and destroy everything." The man met her eyes and shrank away from the glare being aimed at him, agreeing and setting their course with as little cargo as he dared to make it there and back without restocking. Gillian settled on deck, wrapping her coat around herself and sighing as she watched the water begin to rush by, the wind taking to their sails. In and out as fast as she could. She had to get that Jewel back home.

The wind at the harbor was bitterly cold when they reached it, Gillian leaving the ship with her horse and letting them turn around and head right back out to sea. Here, she had to be much more careful. In the other kingdoms, she was free to roam, but this was land she didn't know. She would hunt alone and without making herself known to unfriendly eyes, staying away from the populated areas and looking for the capitol city from a distance. The fewer people that knew she was here, the better. She didn't trust the people of Vyek, and she wouldn't give them a chance to betray her. Her trek through the icy land was slow, keeping close to paths she could find without actually traveling on them. She saw few people, and fewer chimera, something she was quite glad for. The fewer troubles she had, the better.

Vyek's capitol, as big as it was, seemed more closed off. The windows of houses were smaller, the streets emptier. These people hid from the cold that enveloped their land. Gillian didn't blame them. She waited for the sun to start slipping below the horizon, which was difficult to see behind the thick clouds, but at least she could tell it was getting darker and colder. She found her way into the palace after some searching, exploring deep within the bowels of the building in search of the Black Jewel.

_There you are._ A voice cooed in her mind, making her pause to listen, _You've come for me, haven't you? Let's see if you can find me before they find you~_ Gillian smirked vaguely, following the echoing whispers that drew her down one hall. She could hear voices muttering behind the door where the voice urged to her from, the silver-haired girl listening,

"It's reacting to something... Has anyone come or gone from this room that seemed suspicious?" One voice asked, another answering,

"No sir, no one but you has come through that door all day. Perhaps there is something outside?" There was a pause of consideration, then the first voice spoke again,

"Keep a close watch on it. There are some things I need to check." Gillian pressed herself to the wall beside the door's hinges as the man's footsteps approached, the door swinging open and a tall brunette man in a mask stepped out, walking away from her. Gillian marked him in her memory, slipping into the room before the door closed and moving quietly along the wall into the shadows, glancing toward the center of the room where the ominous Black Jewel rested on a pedestal, a guard standing nearby. Gillian licked her lips as she watched the man for a moment, hearing the voice again,

_Just what do you think is going to happen if you try to walk up and take me? There's more to this room than meets the eye, girl._ She smirked, slipping up behind the guard and stealing the knife from his belt, reaching up and slicing his throat open, then shoving him toward the pedestal, using his dying body to knock the jewel off, swiftly catching it and rolling back toward the wall, holding the stone to her chest as she watched the guard's body writhe with unseen pain in his dying moments. Gillian smirked in satisfaction, hearing the Jewel's voice hum in her mind, _I like you, girl... Or should I say... Gillian Beilschmidt?_ Gillian chuckled, stowing the Jewel in her pouch and slipping out of the room, taking the fastest route out as she heard running feet and shouts,

"Someone set off the trap spells! Get to the Black Jewel!" A voice commanded, but Gillian just laughed to herself, escaping through a door into the courtyard and heading for the outer wall, the rest of the palace guards focused on getting to the room she had left while she scaled the wall and leapt down, taking advantage of a snowdrift nearby to cushion her fall some before leaping onto her horse and heading south. She'd gotten what she came for, time to go home as quickly as she could.


	5. Sharpened Talons

Gillian's return to Ramneyg was much more subtle this time. With Vyek in an uproar on her way out, no doubt whatever spy was watching Gilbert's movements would be looking for her, and the silver-haired girl wasn't too interested in having to fight the Jewel out of Vyek again. She slipped into the palace quietly, Gilbert looking relieved when she entered the throne room, even though his eyes held more of that crazed gleam than when she'd last seen him, and a blond in rich blue clothes stood nearby. The newcomer seemed confused by how easily she got in, but held his tongue,

"I've returned, Your Majesty." Gillian said calmly, starting to open her heavy coat,

"Welcome back. Do you have it?" Gilbert asked, sitting back some, as if leaning away from some unpleasant presence. Gillian nodded, her hand slipping into her pouch and extracting the Black Jewel, holding it out to be seen, the blond stepping back in slight shock, Gilbert wincing subtly, "Good. Keep it with you for now, we'll deal with it shortly." The jewel went back into her pouch, as Gillian shifted her gaze to the blond,

"This is Francis Bonnefoy, the king of Âge." Roderich explained, the blond bowing with a smile,

"It's a pleasure to meet you, Miss..." He hesitated, not sure what to call her, seeing as she had not given her name,

"Gillian." She replied simply, "My name is Gillian." The blond's sapphire eyes softened a little as his smile returned,

"Miss Gillian." He chuckled a little as he glanced over her appearance when her coat slid to the floor, "I suppose I should be thanking you. I'm told you were the one to convince Gilbert not to kill me yet." Gillian nodded, running a hand through her long hair,

"Retrieving the Jewel was higher priority than revenge kills, as fun as they can be..." She trailed off and thought back to how fun it had been to slaughter her keepers, licking her lips absently before pushing the ideas aside, focusing on Gilbert, "Whenever you have a long enough moment, we can deal with other important matters." The albino emperor nodded, rubbing his temple in agitation,

"The sooner the better, I think. Roderich, would you mind escorting Francis back to his chambers? I have some things to discuss with Gillian in private." Roderich nodded, leading Francis out of the room, Gilbert leading Gillian to the chamber where the Jewel had been kept, letting her place it back on its pedestal,

"...You're hesitating." She stated, looking back at him, "You're having second thoughts?" Gilbert sighed heavily, nodding,

"I've seen what the Jewel does to people... What it's done to me... I don't know if I can convince myself to do what Father did to Ludwig..." Gillian scoffed, stepping closer and taking his hand, the one marked with the symbol of the Jewel,

"I won't allow my emperor to live out the rest of his life in madness. The eagle is crippled, flightless. Don't let it lose it's head when it still has talons to stab into the eyes of its enemies." Gilbert stared at her for a long moment, then relaxed, chuckling weakly,

"You're right. This is the only way to know for sure if you are who I hope you are." He set his free hand on her shoulder, meeting her eyes, "Please. If this does work... Be careful. I don't want to lose you too." Gillian nodded, smirking at him and squeezing his hand,

"Trust me." Gilbert stepped into the center of the magical ring, closing his eyes and taking a moment to collect himself before reciting the incantation that would break his contract with the jewel, relaxing visibly and checking his hand to be sure the mark was gone, allowing Gillian to take his place in the circle. He murmured the words to her and handed her the stone, biting his lip as he watched her recite the incantation. Gillian felt the stone throb in her hand before there was a sudden rush of raw power that coursed through her body, making her gasp and fall to her knees, clutching the stone to her chest.

"Gillian!" Gilbert cried, panicked and worried, but not daring to get too close in case she did the same thing he had done. The albino girl knelt on the stone for a long, tense moment, then began to laugh, quietly at first, building to a near-crazed cackle as she sat back on her heels, a manic grin splitting her face and her eyes wide, as if seeing everything for the first time, taking a deep breath as the laughter died down,

"That feels... Nice..." She cooed, looking at the Jewel in her hands and giggling now and then, slowly getting to her feet as the voice of the Jewel purred in her mind,

_You and I will get along quite nicely._ Gillian hummed in agreement, putting the Jewel where it belonged and turning to the man that stood frozen in place, slightly terrified by the look in her eye.

"G...Gillian...?" He asked hesitantly, and she smiled, running a hand through her hair as she calmed down from her episode,

"Relax, Gilbert. I'm not going to attack you. The Jewel and I were just... Having a moment, as it were. I'm feeling just fine." He still seemed unsure, but when Gillian pulled down her left glove, the pale skin of her hand was boldly contrasted with the Black Jewel's symbol, proving her to be its new user. Gilbert nodded and the mark was hidden again as they moved toward the door,

"I think it'd be best to not make this known beyond the two of us. The fewer that know, the better advantage. The rest of the world can continue to think I am the user and that you are just a random girl pretending to be my sister to keep me sane." Gillian nodded, smirking a bit,

"And talking reason into you to not kill your blond friend." She added, making Gilbert laugh,

"That too. Now, what say we spend some time with our guest so you can get to know him, hm?"


	6. Flexing Claws

With Gillian's help, negotiations between Francis and Gilbert ran smoothly, agreeing to not start a war or kill anyone in revenge, and to start patching things up between the two kingdoms. Francis ended up apologising for not looking after Ludwig better on his journey to Cenarf, and for not being able to locate where he'd gone after the attack. Gilbert apologised for threatening the king and his country, explaining that under the Black Jewel's power and without Ludwig to keep him stable, he'd gone beyond reason and acted rashly. Satisfied with their new truce, the two rulers began discussing what to do against their common enemy, the person who had caused so much grief and the loss of nearly all of Saia's ruling family.

"Gillian, in your letter you'd told me that you had guessed the Jewel's location after investigations in Cenarf. Where was it?" Gilbert asked, looking up at her as he lounged on his throne. She cleared her throat slightly, glancing away,

"Somewhere that's been drawing very little attention to itself. The people who attacked the envoy were very likely from there." Gilbert frowned, opening his mouth to point out that she didn't answer his question, but she cut him off, "For now, let's not point fingers. I doubt they'd like it, since I'm not totally sure who all is in on their schemes, and to what degree." Gilbert sighed, nodding to himself,

"I suppose you're right... We just saved innocent people from an unnecessary war, no need to drag other innocents into one." He rubbed his temple, sighing a bit, "In that case, what did you learn of Ludwig and the others?" Gillian shrugged absently, toying with her hair,

"About as much as Francis knows. They were tricked into leaving Zeldwintsar with the false escort and were confronted in Kyuret. The User of the Green Jewel, the Head Wizard's son, intervened and gave them a chance to escape, though no one knows where, and it's been confirmed that at least Ludwig and his escort are dead, as determined by the marks on yours and Kiku's brother's hands. The fate of the mediator, Feliciano, is uncertain, though he's believed to be dead as well, seeing as all three were hit with some sort of death spell." Gilbert nodded slowly, sighing, staring at the floor for a moment,

"I'm hoping that we can find their bodies." Francis murmured, looking worried, "Even that much would be better than nothing..." Both Gilbert and Gillian nodded, the Emperor frowning in thought,

"There has to be something we can do other than wait for them to be found..." He perked up slightly as he remembered something, "Of course. The Red Jewel. With Yong Soo in our care, it would be best to find the Red Jewel and the patriarch of Saia." Francis nodded and Gilbert looked to his albino sibling, "Gillian, do you think you can find the Jewel while we search for the patriarch?" Gillian nodded with a vague smirk,

"Yes, your Majesty." A scoff of contempt interrupted the conversation, all heads turning to the speaker, Gillian and Gilbert narrowing their eyes when they saw the masked brunette walking into the room,

"Such confidence, girl. You got lucky finding your Emperor's jewel, but the Red Jewel is kept much more secure from outsiders." Gillian straightened up as she crossed her arms, blinking slowly,

_That rat has caused enough trouble within these walls._ The Jewel hissed in her mind, making her fingers twitch with the powerful bloodlust that came with it, _Break him. Show him how wrong he is!_ Despite the insistent voice, Gillian simply smirked again, turning to Gilbert and bowing to him,

"I shall return as soon as I can, your Majesty. Try not to do anything stupid while I'm gone." Gilbert's lips twitched up with a smile, a short laugh slipping out,

"I make no promises... Go on, then. Oh, and Gillian?" She paused before descending the steps to pass the masked man, looking back at her brother, who gave a feral grin, "Escort that man out of my city." Gillian nodded and walked toward the man, grabbing him by the throat and dragging him out of the palace, throwing him over a wall and into the sea below.


	7. Stoop and Strike

Gillian took the fastest route to Saia she could, and from there she took a small ship to Vyek, keeping minimal unwanted attention as she made her way back to the capitol, smirking when she saw that they'd doubled their guard around the palace to try and keep her out. That was fine with her, she was itching to see what kinds of things the Black Jewel would tempt her to do to them. She snuck in under cover of night, licking her lips as she drew a dagger from her belt and crept toward one of the guards who had his back to her, her sharp eyes finding a gap in his armour that she could get the blade through, covering his mouth as she stabbed him, hauling him to a shadowed corner where he would die unnoticed, letting her slip by and into the palace with ease. The knife slipped onto her belt again as she moved through the halls silently, navigating them a little better than before, but still not sure where to search for the Red Jewel.

"Ah..." Gillian froze as she heard a voice behind her, turning her head to see a tall blond round the corner and walk toward her, smiling a bit, "So you're the one that caused the fuss last time, then?" He asked sweetly, Gillian standing up straight and looking him over carefully, "You really upset my Prime Minister, you know~" He reached out, brushing back some hair from her crimson eyes, Gillian not moving as he scanned her face, "Does the Emperor of Ära not like me? Is that why he had you come here?" Gillian blinked slowly, watching him circle around her, "Perhaps he wishes to make war on my people as he had planned to do to Âge. Madness under such destructive power is terrifying..." He laughed a little, coming to a stop in front of her again and leaning down slightly to be eye-level with her, "Well? Which is it?" Gillian eyed him cautiously, then lifted her chin slightly,

"His Majesty has no interest in fighting you. I'm here for the Red Jewel." The man's violet eyes flickered with sadness, a frown stealing the happy smile that was lingering on his lips,

"And after that, will you come for the White Jewel too? Do you plan to steal all of the jewels for yourself?" He shook his head, straightening up again, "I can't allow you to do that, you know." Gillian shrugged, stepping around the tall man,

"I'm not interested in yours. I want the Red one." She said, stopping as something metallic hooked around her throat,

"I can't let you do that, malenkaya." The man said, his voice turning icy, "I have need of those jewels." Gillian looked back at him, her eyes darkening as she pushed the metal pipe away from her neck, suddenly grabbing his scarf and yanking him down to meet her eye,

"Then maybe you should ask to borrow them next time." She hissed, tightening her grip slightly as a manic grin tugged at her lips, "Until then, I'll be taking the Red Jewel back. So I suggest you hand it over before I turn this city to rubble to find it." The blond's eyes widened some before he looked down, sighing,

"I see... I have no choice, then..." The man reached into his coat, extracting the Red Jewel from a pocket, offering it to her. Gillian took it, nodding as she let him go, stowing the jewel in her pouch and smirking a bit,

"I'm sure the patriarch will appreciate you returning this willingly." The blond nodded, letting Gillian walk away again, the albino making her way out of the castle and back south, heading for Ramneyg.

The trip seemed faster on the way back, but Gillian didn't care, taking the jewel to Yong Soo, it's user, the Saian man looking depressed when it was set on the table beside his bed, but he thanked her anyway before settling to rest a little longer, the albino returning to the palace, greeting Gilbert as she entered the throne room,

"I'm back, your Majesty." He smiled, nodding,

"The jewel?" He asked, reaching out to squeeze her hand as she took her place opposite Roderich beside the throne,

"With its user. It was given back without much fuss, thankfully." Gilbert hummed, nodding,

"That's good. I've sent some of the army to look for the patriarch in Saia. Hopefully he'll be found soon." Gillian hummed in agreement, leaning on the throne and looking at her brother quietly,

"...I suppose it's only a matter of time before the one waiting in the shadows makes his move." Gilbert frowned, nodding, Gillian's voice lowering as she narrowed her eyes, "We'll be ready for him."


End file.
